Robes of a different color
by kohmaru
Summary: When Miroku and Inuyasha discover peril in an unexpected place, the gang is left with an amorous hanyou and an angry monk, can they get things back to normal before to much damage is done? InuKag MirSan.
1. Now you see them, now you don't

**Robes of a Different Color**

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**Prologue**

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Disclaimer: Despite what the voices in my head tell me, apparently, I do not own Inuyasha and the associated characters from the Manga and/or anime, at least not after the medication kicks in.

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Above; stillness. The long grass did not stir under the soft breeze, the trees motionless, and the small pond's surface unmarred by ripples, placid despite the gentle zephyrs that moved the clouds above. The glade was peaceful despite the eerie calm. The air was sweet; the sky was blue, and the sun shown gently over the quiet glade.

Below; darkness. As he slept his power grew, and with his power so grew his ambition. Dark centuries, alone, beneath, had honed his body, hardened his determination. He would be free, and the world would tremble before him once again. All he needed to break his curse was for someone to inadvertently …

Above the calm was broken by two figures making their way towards the silent lake.

Below, he stirred.

_Closer, just a little closer you fools._

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**Chapter 1 Now you see them, now you don't**

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"KAGOME, NO!"

Inuyasha charged towards the girl who was standing at the edge of a clearing, preparing to take aim at the beast before them.

"Hmmmn...Inu..?" She cut off turning just in time to see a black shape streaking towards her just as Inuyasha clasped her wrist, swinging her behind him and out of harms way. Inuyasha turned towards the thing making a swipe with his claws, the creature easily dodged and rushed back to rejoin the bulk of its body centered in the clearing.

"Thanks, Inuyasha, I…" Kagome shakily started her eyes somewhat wide with shock; the bow and quiver strewn on the forest floor forgotten beside her.

"Feh…I told you to stay back didn't I!!" Inuyasha gruffly hissed grasping both her shoulders, forcing her to look at him. Kagome's eyes glazed, as she stared off towards the creature that Sango and Miroku were battling in the center of the clearing.

Somewhat softer. "You could have been hurt." Kagome her senses returning shifted her attention back to Inuyasha, here eyes clearing and becoming more focused, as the Silver-haired boy locked his golden eyes with hers. "Now stay back," he commanded

"Uh huh." She nodded her agreement as Inuyasha turned and racing back towards the fray.

_'Inuyasha, this is no time to be making eyes at Kagome, he is so easily distra…' _ Miroku cut off his inner monologue as he caught a glance at the lithe beauty fighting at the other side of the Kuro youkai, a smile momentarily tugging at the corners of his mouth brightening is handsome face, as she skillfully dodged the youkai's attacks. Smoothing his face again into that of casual calm, he turned his eyes back towards the girl in the scandalously short skirt, eyes glinting mischievously for a second before returning to an innocent placidity.

" Kagome-sama where is the jewel shard?!" Miroku called while easily dodging another small black creature that has detached itself from the oozing blob the size of a small house.

"Its in the center, it looks like he swallowed it." She called making her voice carry over the distance. Bending to retrieve her bow and arrows, she started back towards the fighting, instantly forgetting Inuyahsa's appeal to stay back.

"kukukukuk…is that all you want, Monk ? I will give you a closer look at my shard!" Deftly moving between his attackers, the creature launched towards the monk with speed that seemed hardly possible given the creature's size and shape. Catching the annoying monk at chest level he plucked the human easily off the ground.

" Hurnph…" Miroku gasped as the creature pinned his arms to his sides with a constricting grip forcing him to fight to remain conscious.

_'This isn't good' _the monk thought to as the creatures gaping maw loomed closer. He struggles futilely to free himself.

"Houshi-sama!!!" Sango gasped turning her attention to her friend suspended inches from the gigantic mouth of the creature before them. He was struggling vainly to free himself form the creature's slithering appendage.

_I have to help him. _ She steeled herself for another attack, lifting her weapon before her; she caught a red streak from the corner of her eye.

_Inuyasha…_But she had already committed herself, and let the weapon fly.

" HIRAIKO…"

_Sigh Stupid humans, here I go again. _ Inuyasha sped from where he had left Kagome towards the now imperiled monk.

Drawing Tetsusaiga midair, he cleaved the appendage gripping the struggling monk, the forward momentum bringing them both safely away.

"…TSU!!!" Sago's boomerang hit the back of the creature just as the two had safely landed, rending the creature into tiny pieces that began raining down with sickening thuds.

"Sthuuuuu…" The breath Kagome had unconsciously been holding escaped from her now burning lungs.

"Great shot, Sango-chan!" Kagome called closing the distance between her and the black clad taijiya from where she had frozen at the sight of her friend's simultaneous strikes.

"That was amazing!" A barely contained bundle of enthusiasm shouted as he bounded from the tree he had been hiding in, bringing a diminutive two-tailed cat with him.

"Thanks Shippou, Kagome-chan." The young taijiya replied, easily hefting the oversized boomerang that had inflicted such a devastating blow.

Kagome stooped to pick up a jewel shard that was glowing faintly in a still moving clump of dark flesh.

"Ahee…yuck, this stuff is disgusting." She said bunching her face up with a faint look of nausea as she brought her hand closer to her face so that she could more easily examine the viscous fluid that had clung to her. Sighing she wiped her hand on a nearby clump of grass in an attempt to rid herself of the goop. Kagome stood and began to survey the damage.

A hodgepodge of different sized chunks of the creature littered the entire width of the clearing, several trees nearby had been felled in the attempt to secure the jewel. Kagome's mind raced to uncover the root of her growing fear.

_ 'Something isn't right, something is miss…' _ Her eyes grew wide with the realization, she spun to find Shippou still rambling with uncurbed fervor.

"What type of youkai was that Sango? " He gushed hoping to catch the full flavor of the battle, despite having just witnessed it. "I never saw noth'n like it before," the young kitsune continued as he took up station on Sango's shoulder.

"Well, I…" Sango begun, as a wide eyed Kagome suddenly spun, interrupting her train of thought.

"WHERE ARE MIROKU AND INUYASHA !!!???."

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Next time: What has happened to Inuyasha and Miroku…Chapter 2: Strange Bedfellows

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**A/N** Fun with words:

Taijiya- demon exterminator, Houshi- traveling Buddhist monk Kuro- black

Youkai- creature with magical ability generally evil- demon

Tetsusaiga- literally Iron pulverising fang

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**Please read and review:** Constructive criticism is more appreciated then mindless flattery or flaming, but I'll take what I can get. ****


	2. Strange Bedfellows

**Robes of a Different Color**

Chapter 2 Strange Bedfellows

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Disclaimer- Inuyasha and the associated characters still do not belong to me, sigh.

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Shippou and Sango stared back in shock.

_ 'I was so surprised when my attack had worked so effectively that I didn't even notice…' _Her mind scattered

_'I didn't…they're not!!..." _ She could hear her heart throbbing in her ears.

"HOUSHI-SAMA…" She croaked, eyes glazing.

"INUYASHA..." the small group lifted their voice in unison, desperately trying to locate their fallen friends.

Suddenly off to their right, one of the larger chunks of flesh began to move.

"MMMmmmmmm." Sango looked at Kagome. Kagome with a silent nod knocked an arrow and carefully took aim.

They slowly moved closer to the undulating blob, which appeared to be moaning. Shippou jumped off of Sango's shoulder and scamper back towards the tree line, shooting nervous look back towards his two companions.

A black gluey hand emerged from beneath the blob and wiped away the stuff from the top revealing Miroku.

"My dearest Sango, my eternal thanks, but if you wouldn't mind lowering your weapons I'm quite sure this creature," gesturing to the little bits of monster, "is dead."

With a visible sigh the girls lowered their weapons.

"Thank Kami!"

Sango and Kagome rush to Miroku to help free him from the sickening ooze.

"But where's Inuyasha?" Kagome asked with a brow furrowed.

"I'm afraid that the smell has rendered our friend insensate." Miroku stepped aside to reveal a vaguely Inuyasha shaped blob, quiet moans and spastic twitching.

Miroku stooped to retrieve his staff, "Well I suppose I will have to drag Inuyasha farther from the clearing, the smell is too much for the guy to bear." The tall muscular man grabbed the inu hanyou beneath each arm and began dragging him toward the forest and away from the repulsive smell.

Shippou emerged from the safety of the tree with Kirara close behind stopping just shy of Miroku.

"Oh Miroku, we're so glad…we thought…" the small kitsune boy stopped speaking screwing his face into one of disgust.

"You guys STINK!"

"Well thank you for your astute assessment, Shippou, but that is in fact the problem," he said, arching a meaningful glance at the incapacitated Inuyasha.

"We're nearly a hundred yards from the remains of that stinking creature and Inuyasha's condition remains unchanged."

Shippou quirked his face into a smile, "that's because YOU stink, you and Inuyasha stink," the boy said with a giggle.

"Hmmm…?" Miroku studied the kitsune child quizzically.

"Of course, you're both covered…it's all over your clothes." Kagome explained with an exasperated sigh, as they had all failed to discern the obvious.

"Hmmmm..." The monk stopped, bringing an ooze covered hand to his chin, a look of intense contemplation changed his face. "That does present a problem; Inuyasha is too heavy for me to drag to the nearest spring…"

Giving the girls a meaningful look, " Kagome-sama, perhaps you can be of assistance…"

"You want me to help you to drag Inuya…" she cut in, but was stooped mid sentence with a dismissive wave of Miroku's hand.

"No, no," He said shaking his head, "despite your many charms and talents, I fear your added strength at such a distance would not be sufficient…" He trailed off.

Kagome and Sango continued to look at the monk with confusion.

"Certainly my strength..." Sango began, but was also cut off.

"What I propose is much easier, Kagome-sama…"

He turned his gaze to look Kagome straight in the eyes, "Perhaps you would be so kind as to remove Inuyasha's clothes…"

Sango's jaw dropped and Kagome blushed a furious red taking a step back from the boy twitching on the ground.

Miroku's face remained a picture of innocence and virtue; he began to go on, stepping forward to explain.

"HENTIA!!!"

The girls stepped back in unison, turned on their heals, and began to stalk away.

"We'll be back at the camp." Kagome managed to choke out.

Sango turned her head to look over her shoulder shooting the monk a withering glare " Don't come back until you clean those dirty thoughts from your head, hentia," she then turned forward again to catch up to her friend who had already disappeared into the forest. Shippou rolled his eyes at Miroku before scampering after the retreating girls, Kirara hot on his trail.

Miroku watched the retreating girls a wistful smile played across his boyish face.

_ There is nothing quite like the sway of an angry woman's hips._

Sigh

"Well I guess it's just you and me Inuyasha."

Miroku stooped to remove the soiled clothes from his friend.

_ I tried Inuyasha, but Kagome just wasn't biting today…_

_ Well well, I guess it was too much to hope that a half demon would be wearing small-clothes beneath your hadoki_

Miroku smirked as he carefully extricated Inuyasha from his soiled hakama. A mild look of shock creased the monk's usually unflappable visage.

Sigh

_My my my Inuyasha, those assets are certainly wasted on you; I half expected that you were a eunuch; perhaps you are scared you'll hurt someone with…_

Miroku quickly stood taking the naked boy's clothing with him and retreated to a nearby tree to await Inuyasha's return to consciousness.

"Uhhhh…" The silver haired boy brought his hand to his forehead.

_I feel like I've been hit with a two ton boulder… and that smell…_ His hand travels down to search for any damage to his body, and then stopped as he reached his chest. The other hand shot up, patting his body as a shocked and confused look creased his face. Shooting furtive looks around the area he spied Miroku off a bit to his right carrying his clothing.

A low growl rumbles in his chest, with deliberate care to keep his anger in check until the whole situation was understood, the now sitting hanyou carefully began to speak in a low dangerous voice.

"Why am I naked, monk?" Inuyasha nearly spat the last word.

"Please, Inuyasha, calm yourself."

"Start talking." Inuyasha growled as he glared suspiciously at the man.

"As you wish," Miroku sighed with a shrug of his shoulders.

_He can't honestly believe I have indecent intentions towards him, just because I can appreciate a beautiful woman when I see one doesn't mean I'm some sort of…_

His train of thought was interrupted as the angry hanyou seated before him voiced another low growl.

"When Sango destroyed the youkai we were covered with its entrails, the smell incapacitated you and since you are too heavy for me to drag all the way to the spring…" Miroku trailed off as Inuyasha seemed to grasp the situation, his shoulders relaxed and a look of embarrassment seemed to play across his face.

"Feh, I knew that…of course." The naked boy grumbled.

"I had a feeling you might feel that way, that's why I took the liberty of entreating Kagome-sama to assist in your defrocking."

Inuyasha shot Miroku a wide eyed stare, and gulped.

Miroku returned the look with his own serious gaze, nodding solemnly as he continued, "Of course she was reluctant, but finally agreed when she realized what a sorry state you were in. I assured her that you would not mind the intrusion as it was for your own good."

Miroku had lowered his voice and bent a little nearer to the blushing Inuyasha, " I'm sorry to say she became quiet frightened when we removed you pants, she believed that you had been attacked by some sort of large demon snake." Inuyasha looked stricken.

Miroku continued oblivious of his friends building anger, and his own impending doom.

"I explained, of course, that it was not a snake but your…"

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"That stupid perverted man, how dare he suggest something like that?" Sango was still grumbling about Miroku's behavior while gathering wood for the fire.

"Are you really that surprised Sango-chan? I mean we really should have seen it coming." Kagome soothed.

Sigh

"I'm only surprised that he didn't try to grope you as we stalked away."

"Stupid, good for nothing…." The young youkai hunter grumbled again as she changed from her black leather armor to her everyday kimono. She then sat; joining her friend by the fire.

"YOU WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" A flock of birds that had nested in a near by tree took flight as the booming voice broke the calm. The girls looked up from the fire toward the sound of the disturbance.

"Well it sounds like Inuyasha's feeling better." Kagome sighed as she relaxed against a tree

Kagome hunched over her over stuffed yellow bag rummaging to find the bathing supplies.

"Shippou why don't you take these to the others so they can clean themselves properly?" The redheaded boy wilted slightly at the prospect of encountering an enraged Inuyasha.

"But Kagome…I…" The boy stopped as he looked up into Kagome's eyes and realized it was not a request.

"Come on Kirara, let's go." Shippou took the proffered soap and shampoo and bounded off toward the spring.

"Thanks, Shippou!" Kagome called after the retreating child.

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"I told you, Inuyasha, I was only kidding." The handsome monk placated while trying to sooth the new bump on his head.

The tall goo covered man tried to catch up to the naked retreating hanyou.

"You better be, monk, or I'll give you another lump or two," Inuyasha called behind him not slowing to let the other man catch up.

"And for Kami's sake stay away from me, you smell disgusting."

"You don't smell so great yourself, you know," Miroku chided.

"Feh." Inuyasha picked up his pace and headed toward the spring stopping just short of the glade.

Miroku quickly caught up and stopped beside Inuyasha, giving his friend a quizzical look.

"What is it, Inuyasha?"

_ I can't smell anything over Miroku's stench, but I have a bad feeling about this._

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Below he stirred. A flash of silver, the glint of teeth, toward the shallows he sped. Quietly, ever so quietly.

_ That's right you fools, there is nothing to fear, there is no danger here._

_No danger here._

He sent his thoughts out; across the surface a small ripple broke the calm.

_ No danger here._

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Inuyasha narrowed his eyes and scanned the quiet glade for the source of such a disquieting feeling.

_There's no danger here._

After several minutes had elapsed the naked youth shrugged and turned to his companion.

"Feh, I thought I told you to stay away." An evil smile spread across silver haired hanyou's face, a playful spark in his amber eyes.

Quicker then Miroku could wonder at the evil smile he was scooped up and sent hurdling toward the center of the pond, clothes and all.

_At last…._

Inuyasha quickly followed his friend into the water, submerging completely to rinse the dark viscous fluid from his matted hair. The pond was deeper then it appeared and Inuyasha had gone deeper then he had originally planned. During the long swim to the surface he could see the trees and sky distorted, the sun lending no warmth, time slowed down. Inuyasha spine tingled, he sensed danger. A hollow feeling crept over him as he reached the surface and gulped for air.

" Miroku???"

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Inuyasha was alone.

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Next time: Inuyasha finds Miroku and something sinister happens… Chapter 3: The Pact.

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A/N** Fun with words

Hanyou – half youkai

Hakama- those are what Inuyahsa's baggy pants are called

I know, I was just about to get to a good part, but I'm going to leave you with a cliffy, and I'll end every chapter that way until I get some more reviews. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I promise interesting stuff is just about to happen.

If you see any weird mistakes let me know, thanks.

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**Read and Review**: Please review…even if it's just to say "I read it." Or "You suck!" Share the love people.


	3. The Pact

** Robes of a Different Color**

**Chapter 3:** The Pact

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**Disclaimer**- Inuyasha and the associated characters still do not belong to me, or do they? No, no, not mine.

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_Even gods lose_

_When they gamble_

_ - Asian proverb_

The sun had tongued indolently over the western sky towards its resting place in the mountains. Soft buzzing filled the late summer forest, a slow subterranean cadence the perfect backdrop for a typical day in the Sengoku jidai. A pretty school girl, her black hair a ravens wing beating in the wind, repositioned herself once again.

_ Ahhh it's so nice to finally have some peace and quite. It's never this quiet at home, in the future. _ She picked up a small twig from beside her resting place and played with it absently. _ I wonder if Inuyasha is ok. _ She shook her head slightly as if to chide herself. _Of course he is, he's stronger then most full youkai after all, the guy isn't going to get in much trouble taking a bath, especially with Miroku there too. _ Kagome blushed slightly as her mind drifted over the image of an unclothed Inuyasha bathing only a mile away. She forced her thoughts elsewhere unintentionally thinking back to Miroku's offer to assist, she blushed again, and forced her mind to blank.

Sigh

The young miko lounged on her sleeping bag languidly staring into the fire. The fire was a red stylus punctuating the green moss, as hissing cat all teeth and claws, breaking the stillness with pops and quakes, the product of recent rain. With another sigh Kagome rolled over to glance at her friend.

Sango sat on a nearby log attentively polishing Hiraikotsu. Each movement a prayer for perfection, each gesture a study in conservation. Hers was a beauty born of danger, a predatory cat in repose, in stillness the suggestion of danger. Kagome rolled back, lifting her eyes to study the trees overhead, the smoke from the fire snaking away into the distance.

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Shippou's bare feet found comfort in the forests loamy carpet; his pace an imitation of the day, youth's ebullient tempo staccatoed by a fire cat. Leisurely he arrived at the spring were Miroku and Inuyasha were bathing. Out near the center of the spring he could see Inuyasha's silver mane spayed across broad bare shoulders.

"Hey Inuyasha, I have some…" Shippou trailed off, the youth in the pond was distracted by something.

Inuyasha spun again, ignoring the kitsune child calling to him from the far shore. For just a moment his youkai sense had detected danger. He could hear his heart begin to race, a cold dread creeping up his spine. Miroku was missing; he had sunk beneath the dark glassy plane of the spring and then had simply vanished. His inu hearing detected the faint sound of small bubbles bursting on the face of the pound, slightly to his right. He turned and just as suddenly darkness rose to meet him.

Shippou could discern from Inuyasha's anxious thrashing that something was amiss. Just as the red headed boy was about to call out to his friend again the half youkai was abruptly yanked underwater. Shippou gave an involuntary yelp of freight and Kirara transformed in anticipation of attack.

Then as if from nowhere Miroku and Inuyasha emerged from the midnight plane of water- the monk's laughter a sharp contrast to Inuyasha's angry sputtering. Shippou relaxed visibly as his friends emerged from beneath the water, smiling at their antics.

"Karma has a way of sneaking up on you, my friend." The monk chided while moving towards the shore.

"Feh! You sorry excuse for a monk, like you have any room to lecture to me," Inuyasha rasped.

Shippou waited warily for the men to make their way to the shore, he did not want to garner attention from the ever angry inu hanyou.

_Why did Miroku provoke him? He barely needs an excuse to be a jerk as it is. _Shippou pondered this ruefully before shrugging his shoulders. _I guess because it's just so fun. _

The kitsune boy walked up to the Inuyasha and Miroku as they reached the shore delivering the shampoo and soap to the arguing pair.

Shippou, not to be out done, goaded the two as he handed the soap to Miroku, "the girls say you REALLY need this, since you stink so bad and all. They told me to make sure you us it, otherwise they don't want you to come back."

"W-What…they said that?" Inuyasha's ears wilted as he turns towards Miroku.

"It's not our fault Sango…" Inuyasha stopped speaking as he noticed the wide smile on Miroku's face and the now giggling kitsune kit rolling on the ground holding his sides.

"Why you little runt…" Inuyasha growled taking what must have been the fifth swipe at the child that day.

Shippou dodged the clawed anger of the inu hanyou, chuckling as he scampered off to play with the diminutive fire cat youkai.

Miroku began removing his sodden clothes rinsing the gunk off of them in the process. With an appreciative smile he stooped to inspect his handy work, satisfied with the results of his washing he rung the excess liquid out and draped the robes across a sun swathed rock to dry. He then quickly retrieved the beauty products supplied by Shippou.

Inuyasha glanced at the soap and shampoo offered by the monk, before sneering in disgust.

"Feh, I don't need that stinking stuff." Inuyasha said while scooping a handful of sand and smooth pebble from the wet shore.

"This works just fine." The hanyou smoothed the sand through his hair. He worked the sand down the shafts of his long silky alabaster tresses, quickly removing the entrails and dirt. The sand worked remarkably well without imparting any lingering smells that might offend Inuyasha's sensitive nose. The youkai filth had been largely washed way before the hanyou dunked himself beneath the surface to rinse the remaining sand from his hair. Deftly he took another scoop of sand and quickly began abrading his supple skin, removing any remaining youkai bits, transforming his fair countenance to a rosy blush in the process.

Miroku had moved a bit off towards a crop of half submerged rocks so that he could relax while indulging in the futuristic beauty regime afforded from Kagome's gift.

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_At last, after nearly millennia, the spell has been broken, and I can be free at last._

The silver demon chortled evilly.

_Now to be free of this murky prison…_

There was a flash of silver so slight even the bathing hanyou could not detect it. The youkai coursed onward, like a knife in the moonlight, flashing his intent; unnoticed by the monk, unnoticed by the hanyou until he was amongst the rocks. He waited, and watched, as he had grown quite patient in his years of imprisonment.

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The monk stepped forward unaware of danger, intent only upon ridding himself of the youkai remains that had so providently rendered both himself and his hanyou friend unable to discern the sinister aura of the glade. Miroku took one step, then another, closer and closer into the jaws of the youkai that waited patiently below.

_One more step and I will have you my stupid human, you will be imprisoned here while I walk once again upon the earth, all will tremble before my might, all will bow…_

And then it happened Miroku lifted his foot and began to bring it down again just as one of Shippou's toy snakes appeared before the unsuspecting monk. The momentary shock stumbled the usually sure footed Houshi plunging him forward to hit the rock before him with a shocking squish.

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_NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_

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_Squish?_ Was Miroku's last coherent thought before the spring was engulfed in a blinding light.

Shippou who was teasing Kirara with a bit of ribbon Kagome had provided staggered back as his friends momentarily disappeared in a flash of white. When his vision returned and small white and black ghosts stopped swimming in front of him he could see Inuyasha and Miroku laying still. The small kitsune raced towards Inuyasha who had been close to the shore and had fallen with his upper torso out of the water.

The silver haired hanyou lay as if in a deep sleep, eyes closed and ears unmoving. Shippou struggled to push Inuyasha onto his back, but the weight was too much for the small demon. Resigning himself, Shippou tilted the boy's head to the side.

Miroku had fallen forward onto the rocks near where Shippou had unleashed his snake illusion. The dark-haired monk was in peril of slipping from his precarious perch and sinking beneath the water.

Kirara, transformed once again and flew to the unconscious monk, gingerly taking the nude man in her jaw. She lifted him from the rocks and laid him gently by the anesthetized hanyou on the shore.

"Inuyasha, Miroku, please wake up!" The red headed kitsune pleaded, gently slapping the monks face. The action had no effect.

"Inuyasha you stupid jerk, don't you die." Shippou half heartedly chomped down on the seemingly dead man's head. Tears were running unabatedly down the forlorn child's face when his chomps failed to incur even the most miniscule trace of irritation or awareness. After several more attempts the small boy wiped his face with the back of his arm and turned bravely towards the still transformed Fire-cat youkai.

"You stay here and guard them Kirara, Kagome and Sango will know what to do." With a slight nod from the cat beast the kitsune child made his way swiftly from the spring back towards the camp.

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Shippou coursed like a volcano erupting, covering the distance with angry speed, slicing the day's lazy pace with his on chaotic energy. He arched his neck forward, straining to cover the distance, blinded by the tears, crashing through the clearing; lightning made flesh.

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Kagome laughed quietly at the tale Sango was recounting involving an encounter with a Slug youkai. The pair were startled out of the revelries by the anguished cry of an incoming kitsune.

"Kagomeeee…." Shippou wept as he jumped up into the awaiting girl's arms.

_Great what did Inuyasha do now?_

But before she could lend voice to her thoughts the child ceased his sobbing long enough to explain further.

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Miroku slowly sat up placing a hand to his head and looked around slowly. Spying the body next to him, his eyes grew large in silence. Carefully he prodded the familiar figure, resulting in a muzzy moan. The dark haired man beside him squinted while propping himself into a half sitting position. As the figure's eyes adjusted he moved his gaze up from the well muscled arm on the ground before him to the still staring face of an amber eyed hanyou. Instantly a look of dread marred the man's visage; just as it had the faster recovering hanyou.

"I…you…" The black haired man could hear himself say…but the ability to form coherent thoughts into words and sentences seemed to escape the pair for a moment longer.

The silver-haired hanyou pried his eyes off of his bewildered companion to examine his own body for additional damage. His clawed hand smoothed his chest on its downward examination of his own anatomy. A mischievous flicker in his eyes flared and then died as his hands stopped and then continued their careful trek down the slope of his thigh to his muscular calf to the clawed tips of his toes.

The violet-eyed man, for his own part, was staring intently at the back of his hands as if trying to memorize the dull point of his nails and the cool glint of the prayer beads wrapped around his right hand.

His eyes glazed slightly as he gingerly brought his left hand towards his throat as if expecting to find an open wound. At finding nothing his eyes flashed violet as he intently returned his gaze to the silver-haired boy beside him.

The hanyou still sat slightly grinning when the handsome monk beside him finally fixed him with an intent look. The monk's gaze began to take on a heated aspect when the hanyou failed to acknowledge him. Suddenly he turned to face his friend.

"Calm yourself," Miroku placated, "this is easily fixed." Furrowing his brow slightly, he continued, "Though, perhaps it would be better if the others did no know."

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Sango and Kagome streaked through the forest, Shippou once again wearing a look of determination.

_I can not cry. I will have to protect these helpless humans, now that Inuyasha and Miroku are…_

The three had breached the tree line beside the spring when they were halted in there tracks by a quite unexpected sight.

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The monk gave the silver haired youth a distrustful look.

"Give me one good reason why we should not tell…"

Both men lowered there voices as they to spoke in earnest. Minutes had elapsed when there discourse was interrupted by the loud entrance of a kitsune child followed by two frantic females breaking through a copse of trees on their left. The women halted their frenetic speech as they gaped in horror at the very naked males standing before them.

The monk reflexively covered himself and glared in anger and embarrassment at the interrupting party. The muscular hanyou simply turned, smirking from his companion to peer at the blushing women before them, making no move to cover himself. Inuyasha's eye's widened slightly at the hanyou's behavior and stepped in from of Miroku, shielding the women from the not insignificant view. The monk shot daggers over his shoulder at the still smiling youkai, before pointedly fixing once again upon the crimson girls.

Sango and Kagome clamped both eyes shut before retreating a few steps.

"After all those lectures you two hurled at us to not peek at you when bathing, just what do you think you two are doing here?!" The monk admonished his voice straining to contain both anger and embarrassment.

"Now, now," the grinning hanyou began, "perhaps they wanted to joi…" luckily this invitation was overshadowed by Sango's moan and Kagome's embarrassed sputtering.

"I…we…Shippou said…we thought…" Kagome tried to entreat her friends support by turning her head in the direction she believed Sango was standing, studiously refusing to unclamp her eyelids.

Without so much as a word to the men before her, Sango opened her eyes and clasped Kagome's arm tightly. The taijiya's embarrassed flush had transformed into crimson fury. Swiftly, and a bit to forcefully, she retreated with the younger girl still sputtering helplessly.

They had breached the glades edge when an earth rending screech shattered the calm once again.

"SHIPPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOU!!!!!!!!"

_ I'm going to KILL that little…_

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Miroku's smile widened as he watched the furious women retreat.

"Perhaps I should stop them; they could still join us…" The hanyou mused arching an eyebrow at the man now standing beside him as if waiting for consent.

"You shut your dirty mouth…" the dark haired man nearly growled.

"Do we have an agreement then?" Miroku studied the stoic man calmly. "I'm sure you can see the logic…" The hanyou's voice was honey; a look of supreme innocence transformed the hanyou's handsome face to that of an angelic radiance.

"Hurmph…if I agree to this there are going to have to be some ground rules, if this is going to work, m—"

"Of course." The silver-haired man smoothly interjected, leading his friend to the now dry clothes. They dressed while discussing the particulars of the hanyou's scheme until a bargain had been struck and the pact had been made. The hanyou's hair flashed silver as it caught the afternoon's last dieing rays, the pair slowly made their way back to camp.

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The spring was peaceful once again its natural beauty marred only by a small insignificant silver fish, its teeth dyed rouge by the sunsets glory. Its eyes opaque in death, its small body bobbing among the jagged rocks; he had finally escaped his prison, though not in the way he had planned.

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Next time: What knowledge has the hanyou gained, what event has so changed the monk…more will be revealed in Chapter 4: Schooling the Hanyou

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**A/N** Fun with words: Miko- Shinto priestess

Thanks to all of you that took the time to review last chapter. As I promised no immense cliff hanger this chapter…well at least no one's missing I'll continue to put out about 20 pages of story a week as long as you continue to R&R

As a side note, if anyone's looking for some really good writing/ interesting plots check out "my favorite stories" under my profile…these are some fine fics imho

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**Please read and review:** Attention whore at your service: I still appreciate constructive criticism the most, but I'm not picky when it comes to attention. Domo.


	4. Schooling the hanyou

**Robes of a Different Color**

**Chapter 4**: Schooling the hanyou

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Disclaimer- Inuyasha and the associated characters still do not belong to me, or do they? No, no, not mine.

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_ Write a bad dream _

_on a south wall_

_The sun will turn it into a promise_

- _Asian proverb_

"When I find that little runt, I'm going to…grrr" Sango fumed. They were nearly back to the camp and Sango still had not sufficiently banked her anger.

"Sango-chan, don't you think you are being a little hard on Shippou, he is just a child after all." Kagome smiled trying to sooth her friend, she did not want to make light of Sango's embarrassment, for she herself was somewhat angry at Shippou's "joke, but kitsunes, after all, are known for their trickery.

sigh

"…And after all don't you think perhaps it was worth it?" Kagome hesitantly smiled at the young youkai exterminator pacing beside her.

"What? W-what do you mean?!" Sango turned to her smiling friend, aghast.

Kagome hesitantly explained, a faint blush spreading across her pretty face, "I just mean, they've both done that often enough to us…at least Miroku has, perhaps they disserved it."

"KAGOME-CHAN!" Sango blushed again, "I did not want to see Houshi-sama and Inuyasha n-naked, even if it has been done to me."

"Oh, I know, I know…I just meant, you know, it is a small consolation…Miroku looked awfully embarrassed." Kagome hurriedly corrected, making a soothing motion with her hands as she spoke.

"Perhaps you are right, I may have overreacted." Sango tilted her had for a moment as if in thought, then continued "and perhaps they will now be less likely to peek at us again."

_Fat chance_

_Not likely_

Kagome and Sango looked at each other then laughed as if they had just had the same thought and realized how unlikely it was for Miroku to be so easily dissuaded.

"After all I may not Kill Shippou; maybe just hurt him in some way…" Sango mused.

Kagome had not heard the girl beside her; she was lost in her own thoughts again. _Miroku did seem awfully embarrassed, for someone as experienced with women I would not think him so shy. Inuyasha, _Kagome blushed again as the thought of the naked man's name, _who is usually painfully bashful about such things made no move whatsoever to shield himself from us…it's as if they reacted in the exact opposite of the way I would expect…_

Kagome turned to the silent girl beside her ready to ask her opinion on the whole situation when Sango abruptly turned and started running towards some unknown enemy.

"I've got you now you little prankster…" She grumbled loud enough for Kagome to catch, as she made her way toward the orange crop of fur sticking from beneath a bush.

Kagome looked on with an exasperated sigh, and then strode off towards camp.

_Shippou you deserve it after all, at least it's not Inuyasha after you this time._

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_ Sango is almost as scary as Kagome, when she's mad. _ The small kitsune sat perched on a limb listening to Kagome and Sango as they walked; he had transformed himself into a cute little red squirrel. _It's not like it's my fault, after all, I thought Inuyasha and Miroku were seriously hurt. _

"Nobody ever believes me." Shippou sighed, with a wounded look on his cute little squirrel face. He looked down at the girls again, Kagome looked deep in thought but Sango had stopped walking and was looking straight at him.

_Uh-oh, I think she saw me._ Shippou transformed and scampered away quickly.

Luckily for Shippou his youkai powers afforded him far superior speed, and after several minutes of chasing Sango broke off. Revenge, after all, is a dished best served cold. Shippou found himself hiding in a bush, just to make sure that Sango's anger had abated.

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"…you just remember that monk…"

_What's that? It sounds like Inuyasha and Miroku are up to something _Shippou crouched down, hiding himself completely in the foliage, and perked up his ears.

"I told you Inuyasha, I will not act inappropriately towards Sango and Kagome, they are my friends too, after all."

"Yeah, well that never stopped you before."

"Inuyasha you do me a great injury."

"You'll be injured by my fist if you try anything monk."

_That seems rather unlikely considering our current circumstances, _The monk thought but did not lend voice to the thought.

"I think that we should start addressing each other properly or the girls are going to figure it out pretty quickly."

"Feh, whatever you say…Inuyasha."

"Remember, Miroku, you are a houshi, try to speak more politely and try to control your anger."

"Hmmph…I don't think I need lessons from you."

_What the heck are they talking about, _Shippou wondered while inching closer to the place where his to friends were speaking. Just as Shippou was about to uncover the mystery he heard an ominous sound from behind.

"There you are you little brat!" Sango lunged trying to catch the young kitsune by the scruff of his vest.

"YEA-AAH, Sango! Please don't hurt me, let me explain…" Shippou yelled while darting forward towards Inuyasha and Miroku.

The two men were silently watching the young woman chase after the kitsune. They had broken off there conversation as soon as they heard Sango approach.

Miroku and Inuyasha continued back to camp, leaving Sango to dole out the appropriate punishment.

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"Alright guys it's ready" Kagome said distributing the ramen to her friends who were now all gathered around the small fire in the center of their camp.

"Ah…thanks, Kagome…-sama" Inuyasha said tentatively, accepting his portion of ramen, studiously forcing a beatific smile onto his face. He shifted his loose purple robes and positioned himself across from the school girl.

"Sure, no problem." Kagome smiled back. _That was weird, is he still embarrassed? _

"Mmmmm…good." The hanyou was eating his ramen in a noisy fashion, somewhat more boisterous then usual.

_Well at least Inuyasha seems fine._ Kagome thought.

Miroku shot the noisy hanyou a dirty look.

The look went unnoticed by Kagome and Shippou, but was not missed by Sango. _Now what's that all about, _she thought.

"So do we have a destination in mind now, or is it just travel and search again?" Sango said fixing a look first at Miroku and then at Inuyasha, effectively halting the glowerfest.

"Feh." Miroku looked away from Sango and the dark haired monk, and returned his attention to his unfinished ramen. Sango was almost certain that she detected a rye smirk flash across Inuyasha's face before he looked away; but before she could contemplate the strange behavior further Miroku had moved closer to her taking both her hands in his own.

"Why Sango my dear, we will be heading towards the village of an old acquaintance of mine. I'm sure that we will be able to gain some valuable leads there."

Sango was looking at the monk dubiously. "An old acquaintance?"

"Oh yes, a beautiful young woman, she and I were quiet close." Inuyasha emphasized the last word with a smile, _take that you stupid monk, make me seem like a pig – two can play at that game._ The insinuation was lessened somewhat when Miroku turned his head and began to blush…_is he blushing, _Sango thought in surprise, _it's like he knew that saying that would make me angry but he said it anyway._

_Damn it, did I just blush? Stupid I don't care what she thinks about Miroku-why should I be embarrassed, I'm not the one chasing every pretty girl- no but you just said- Shut up! Damn it this is hard._

Before Sango could respond to this in any way she was distracted by Inuyasha's apoplectic coughing. The silver haired boy had fallen onto his side, eyes bulging; face a furious shade of red.

"Inuyasha, are you ok?" Kagome stooped over to pat Inuyasha on the back and shot a questioning look at Miroku and Sango.

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For what seemed like the tenth time that day Sango and Kagome silently padded to the spring. Despite missing the full body entrails douse that Inuyasha and Miroku had received the girls nonetheless felt grimy. It had been a full day of running around and youkai fighting. The warm vernal sun had set, and a bright full moon had risen. The girls could plainly see the path before them, and though the spring was not thermally heated the cool temperature was not sharp as the night air was still warm.

Each girl settled into the spring soap in hand lost in their own private thoughts.

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The girls had departed to the spring only moments ago and the atmosphere in the camp was tense. The Houshi and the hanyou were having a best frown contest, and for once Shippou wanted nothing to do with this contest. The kitsune could not figure out what was wrong with the two males before, but for once decided that to press the issue without Sango and Kagome around might be near fatal so instead he played quietly with Kirara.

Suddenly Miroku seemed to regain himself he shrugged his shoulders and smoothed his face.

"I'm going to check the area for any threats," the silver haired man announced to know one in particular. Without waiting for any acknowledgement he disappeared into the forest.

Inuyasha said nothing and looked to the fire in the center of the camp. To the casual observer he looked nothing more then a holy man deep in meditation, if anyone had checked much closer they would see a man in a deep sulk.

Shippou, while not a casual observer, none the less had never seen Miroku deep in a sulk, so was unsure as to what exactly he was seeing. His courage returned somewhat when Inuyasha left and finally decided to speak up.

"Wow, Miroku that flash of light must have really screwed you up?"

The houshi turned his attention towards the kitsune across from him, but said nothing, he quirked one eye brow as if to say 'what do you mean?'.

Shippou took the cue and continued, "I just mean you the girls didn't even remind you not to peek at them, and Inuyasha's not here to hit you…and yet you made no move to go spy on the girls while they're bathing."

"I'm proud of you." Shippou said with an approving smile, though he did enjoy the hi-jinks that such peeking often provoked.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes, "Why would I want to…" he cut off. When it dawned on him he narrowed his eyes then took off towards the spring.

Shippou nodded to himself, _well things seem to back to normal now._

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_Stupid hentia monk, I'll kill him…or I will when we get this problem taken care of. _Though this human body was not nearly as strong or fast as that of a youkai or hanyou, it none the less was quite swift and he had made it to the spring in good time.

He could hear the girls bathing in the spring just beyond the clump of bushes he had crouched behind. He scanned the area for his previous form, but saw nothing.

_Could it be that he actually didn't come here to peek at the girls? _The black haired man was about to slink away when he caught a flash of red in the pale moonlight.

"Why Miroku, whatever are you doing here." The hanyou asked the man before; his voice was calm but held a hint of mischief.

"You Bastard, you are not going to hijack my body and act like a dirty pervert. What happened to our pact, you want me to be 'polite' and I want you to stop…" Inuyasha broke off his angry whisper when the man before him held up a placating hand and fixed him with deep amber eyes.

Those amber eyes actually held a pained look, which may have been genuine; however his ears were twitching furiously…a sure sign of a dissembling hanyou. "Why you wound me,I was simply passing by here and stopped to listen to the girls speaking, they have not said anything that leads me to believe they have discovered our switch…and of course perhaps take in the beautiful view." Miroku vaguely gestured to the bright full moon.

"Why you…" Inuyasha lunged towards the crouching hanyou.

Miroku easily dodged and landed several feet away… "Well that's my cue to depart." The silver haired boy flashed a warm smile and dashed down the trail.

Inuyasha could feel a frustrated growl start deep in his chest, though it came out sounding more like a strangled grunt. He was about to make his way back to camp when he came face to face with two angry looking girls.

He stood making a soothing motion with his hand, _pact be damn,_ he thought as he prepared to explain that he hadn't been peeking and that it was Miroku…when all thought turned liquid and the ground rushed up to meet him.

"HENTIA!!!!!"

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Later when he regained consciousness he stumbled back into camp to find the girls sleeping peacefully and a very innocent looking hanyou pretending to sleep in a tree nearby.

Inuyasha gave a sigh of defeat and prepared to climb a tree to sleep as well however another wave of wooziness washed over him. He shook his head dejectedly and settled down on the ground.

sigh

"I'm going to get you for this." Inuyasha whispered just loud enough for the hanyou to hear, then closed his eyes and passed out again.

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Next Time: Karma sweet deliscious karma.

Chapter 5: Subduing the Houshi

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** A/N **No vocab. this chapter.

Check out my other fics if you enjoyed this:

**The Mononoke of Forest Keep**

**The Sleeper**

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Read and Review: Please!

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	5. Subduing the Houshi

A/N If you are just tuning in feel free to ignore this message- if you are just beginning at this update please take note that this story has been revised and this chapter reflects the following revision.

1. Third person pov- Inuyasha and Miroku are referred to by name based on their personalities and minds not the body they are residing in. References to Houshi or Hanyou are based on appearance.

2. Miroku and Inuyasha's pov are intuitive.

3. All other pov are unaware of any switch so are based on the assumption that Inuyasha and Miroku's minds reside in their proper bodies.

This I believe is the most intuitive way to describe things- I hope no one is confused… all right on with the show.

**Robes of a Different Color**

**Chapter 5:** Subduing the Houshi

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Disclaimer: It's probably safe to assume that if I didn't own Inuyasha and the associated characters for the first four chapters I probably don't own him now…but I'll keep you updated.

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Inuyasha awoke to the sweetest sound possible.

splash

"Shippou!!! I'm going to kill you, you little bastard!"

"Kagomeeee!!!! Make him stop!"

"Inuyasha, OSWARI!"

CRASH

"Mrphulm"

_Perhaps this will not be so bad after all, _The black haired man stood, paused for a moment and then very deliberately wiped the rather large smile off his face. _Oh this is going to be good._

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_Buddha save me, who would have thought Inuyasha was right all along? Shippou really is a malicious youkai sent from hell to torment me, or Inuyasha rather…which I guess is me now…damn it. _The hanyou was cursing under his breath but from his place on the ground grass and dirt had worked their way into his mouth, nose, and ears making all sounds mumbled.

When the subduing spell wore off he was finally able to free his head from his new dirt home only to see his former face smiling quite brazenly at him. Now Miroku was not a conceited person, he simply had an acute awareness of his own good looks, but to see his own face, his own face meaning the face that Inuyasha was now wearing and quite rudely directing bubbly cheerfulness at his new prone form, well that familiar face, that open smiling mischievous handsome face, that same face; had decidedly and suddenly become the single most irritating face he had ever seen. His own smiling face was making him very very angry.

He had been angry before, though as one in the service of Buddha he usually was able to keep most anger carefully hidden behind an impassive wall focusing the energy to more productive outlets, channeling it towards constructive ends. Certainly even when pushed to exhibit his anger outwardly it had taken a great more then a smug smile to stroke even the tiniest flames of anger. Getting angry over a smile or a childish prank was ridiculous it was something Inuyasha would do, not something he would do. Despite the logical inconsistencies in his behavior he was angry, and not the type of angry that you can just push down and forget, this was the type of angry that only went away when you had banked said anger with sweet warm blood. Now part of him recoiled in horror at the errant thought, but a much larger vocal part of him was grimly delighted.

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_Ooh! He makes me so mad!_ Kagome picked distractedly at a tendril of hair as she padded down the path besides her companion. _Just one morning I'd like too not wake to the sound of Inuyasha yelling, Shippou crying, some youkai trying to eat us. _Kagome juggled her towel and water container in her arms, dropping her brush on the ground in the process.

"Stupid me, stupid stupid!"

"Kagome-chan what's the matter?" Sango turned to see her friend straightening from the ground.

"Hmm? Oh I forgot the soap; I left it sitting on my sleeping bag."

Even though they had only left camp about two minutes ago, she really didn't want to go back and deal with Inuyasha's attitude. On the other hand there wasn't much point to washing up without soap

"Keep going on ahead, I'll just run back and get it and then catch up with you, ok?"

"Oh, ok." She watched her friend retreat with a smile.

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A small part of Inuyasha felt a little sorry for Miroku. After all he had an intimate knowledge of how unjust Kagome could be with her ritual subduing. What Kagome failed to realize was that Shippou was a youkai sent from hell to torment him, or apparently his form, which Miroku was now in, which meant no more subduing, which made the black haired man smile quite widely at the prone form of his former figure. Even to a hanyou with exceptional strength being slammed into the ground did not feel good, in fact it hurt quite a lot, perhaps not enough to inflict permanent damage to his body, but certainly enough to damage his pride. That sort of undeserved treatment by a girl, a small fragile human girl, well that was worse then any sort of physical damage his bastard brother had ever inflicted. The violet eyed man smiled wider when he realized with relish what sweet revenge it was seeing Miroku prostrate on the ground for something so undeserved, much like his own treatment from the girls the night before. The small part of him that felt sorry for the hanyou evaporated in the cool morning air.

Kagome and Sango had gone to the lake to freshen up and retrieve water for the morning meal shortly after subduing the hanyou. Shippou had scampered off somewhere with Kirara retreating no doubt to a safe distance until Kagome returned, not wanting to be alone with the larger fiercer easily angered male without some form a protection.

Leaving only Inuyasha and Miroku in the camp. So there was no one to see Inuyasha, albeit in Miroku's body, standing over the red clad hanyou beaming happy bubbly glad-for-once-I'm-not-you thoughts at his prone form; no one except the victim himself, who seemed to be stirring from his dirt home.

Inuyasha continued to smile at his companion as the man spit clumps of dirt from his mouth and removed grass from his nose and ears. Though he was disappointed that the subduing spell had released him so quickly, the purple robed man was somewhat comforted by the fact that Kagome was sure to subdue him many times over before they could reach the village Miroku had told him about and return to their proper forms. Especially if he had anything to do with it, a plan already beginning to take shape in his mind.

Still smiling at the red clad form, he was somewhat taken aback by the look that seemed to be glinting in the hanyou's eye. Now to be sure he had never seen that look before on his own face, well while he was wearing his own face that is, but he had seen it enough times in the face of other youkai to know that it was defiantly not a good sign. Beside the look, he could sense gathering youki, dark and dangerous, the sort that he'd felt only from Naraku or possibly from Sesshoumaru, this was his youki he realized unquestionably and unerringly his own youki radiating off of the body-swapped Miroku.

Inuyasha was confused, why was Miroku so angry? Yes getting subdued hurt, it was humiliating true, but the sort of anger that seemed to be rolling off of his body like thick black waves was completely and utterly unprovoked. Even without Testusaiga, which he noticed was laying a few feet away discarded in the fall from the tree branch, it took much more to provoke this sort of change. He'd spent his whole life keeping a check on his anger, sure it might seem like he was short tempered to others, but that was just part of his personality. When he was annoyed or frustrated or sad or sometimes even happy he would shout, or swear, or perhaps rip a tree or two to shreds, or on occasion rough Shippou up a little. He couldn't walk around acting like a pansy; he already had enough people looking down on him because he was a hanyou or because a school girl could subdue him with a word, without showing his emotions so obviously. But to get angry well it took a lot more then falling out of a tree. Then he realized that Miroku had not had over half a century to control the youkai blood that resided within his new body, and was probably ill prepared for the experience. _Shit!_ He took a step back, his smile gone, _this is not good_.

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"You'd think I was a youkai sent from hell to torment him, the way he acts." Shippou explained to the small fire cat youkai. Shippou sucked leisurely on the lolly Kagome had given him when Inuyasha, the big meany, tried to bite his head off just minutes earlier.

"I mean Kirara you should have heard the things he was saying in his sleep."

Kirara cocked her head to the side and mewed for Shippou to explain himself.

"If Kagome had heard the things he was moaning, well I'm pretty sure she would have subdued him into oblivion. I might be a kid but even I know enough to know…well I'm not sure but I know it wasn't good."

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_Hmph, so if I sneak around the other side of the camp maybe I can get the soap without a confrontation. It's not like I'm, scared of Inuyasha or anything. _Kagome shuffled her feet uncomfortably, eyes scanning for said dog-boy as she flanked the camp, to hopefully put off any impending arguments until after breakfast.

Truthfully she had sat Inuyasha just as much for hitting Shippou as she had to hide her own embarrassment.

The activities of yesterday had proven to be excellent fodder for inappropriately embarrassing dreams that concluded with a particular hanyou emerging from a lake naked and wet and then advancing on a particular school girl that could do nothing but stand in shocked awe. He stood before her in all his glory no hint of bashfulness or shame and cupped her cheek in his hand. She had looked up into his eyes both surprised and embarrassed by the tender gesture, to find earnest honey pools staring intently back. He lowered his lips until they were mere centimeters from hers. She could feel the heat of his breath tickling her skin, and the wild erratic pace of her own heart. He parted his lips as if to whisper something to her, she could see her name hovering on his tongue…and then he said it. Her name did not come out like a whisper, more like the high pitched keening of an injured animal. She bolted upright, still flushed from her dream, took one look at her surly dream man and the dangling kitsune and did the only thing she could have possibly done in such a circumstance.

She sat him, and headed off to the stream to 'cool off' before having to face him again.

_Ehh? Shippou-chan?_ Kagome was pulled out of her revelries when she heard the voice of the kitsune child relaying some story to the bantam fire cat.

_Inuyasha was moaning something about ME in his dreams?_ The blush reached even the tips of her ears as she crouched down to listen to Shippou further.

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Kirara mewed again. They were standing a good distance off from the camp, the warm sun dappled through the budding canopy. Not all the trees had leaves yet but most had at least flowers.

"I know because Sango's rendered Miroku unconscious for less."

Shippou turned to regard a furry caterpillar inch along a blade of grass.

Kirara sat by her companion not interested in the caterpillar herself, batting at a particularly sinister looking blade of grass.

"Inuyasha's acting weird, I mean I know he would try to hit me if I woke him up with a face full of water, but he was moaning Sango's name in his sleep, and something about firm butts." Shippou confided in a hushed voice.

"The only thing to do was wake him up before he embarrassed himself or worse yet made Kagome cry."

"You don't think he likes Sango do you?"

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The flushed excitement that Kagome had felt when she thought that perhaps Inuyasha was dreaming of her while she dreamt of him was quickly replaced by dumb shock.

If it had been Kikyou she wouldn't have been surprised, upset yes, surprised no. They had a past together, a history, and as much as it irritated her to admit it she knew Inuyasha still had feelings for the undead miko. But Sango? If Inuyasha liked Sango, she honestly didn't know how to feel. Could she be jealous of Sango, her friend that she loved?

Being resentful of Kikyou was easy; it was irritating to be compared to the perfect Kikyou. Kikyou that came first, Kikyou that looked the same, Kikyou that stole your soul and tried to suck Inuyasha into hell.

Even if Kagome had no deeper feelings for Inuyasha would still not want him to be with HER. But Sango was a different story.

Sango who was strong and kind hearted; who didn't need constant saving, who could protect herself and hold her own in battle. Sango, who could more easily relate to being alone in the world having lost her entire village, or who knew what it was like to fight your own bother, Kagome could see a kinship there one that she knew she couldn't offer.

The more Kagome thought about it the more it made sense. Inuyasha never prevented Sango from leaving to run errands, or called her a bitch, or told her that she was ugly or that she smelled bad. And most importantly he never compared her to Kikyou.

She felt betrayed, she felt hurt, but mostly she just felt incredibly stupid.

_Get a hold of yourself girl, just because he had a dream about Sango doesn't mean anything, right? _ She laughed a weak laugh to herself.

"Yeah it doesn't mean anything; he's still got Kikyou anyway."

_And besides Sango loves Miroku, and I'm fairly sure he feels the same way about her. Everybody loves Sango. _Kagome sighed and left her hiding spot quietly so as not to alert Shippou to her presence as she finally made the rest of her way towards there camp; not staying to here the rest of the child's discourse.

_That's right everybody loves Sango, including you, can you really begrudge your friends' happiness, _Kagome forced a small smile, _of course not._

Kagome really didn't feel quite so bad coming back to camp to get her soap anymore. The lingering effects of her dream had been completely dowsed by Shippou's revelation. In fact she was hoping that maybe he would start to bitch as soon as she got to camp. Sitting him almost always made her feel better.

She would just have to keep an eye out to see if her suspicions were confirmed.

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Kirara mewed and climbed into Shippou's lap.

"Yeah, you're right, but it's weird, I mean I never heard him say Kagome's name like that in his sleep, or anybody's name for that matter. Well their was that one time he said Kagome's name but it wasn't like THAT and there sure as heck wasn't anything about firm butts- just smelling like flowers."

Kirara mewed again.

"Oh you're right, how could I forget the time he whispered Sesshoumaru's name and something about pretty hair, that's pretty disturbing come to think about it, maybe Inuyasha's a bigger freak then I thought."

Shippou dusted himself off and trotted down the path, Kirara followed close behind.

"Maybe we should keep an eye on him anyway, just in case."

Kirara hissed her hackles raised and tail stiff.

Shippou turned towards the feline confused, "What's the matter Kirara?" But then he felt it too, youki, Inuyasha's youki. Were they being attacked? Didn't he have Tetsusaiga? Why can't I feel the presence of any other youkai in the area?

"Come on Kirara let's go."

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He saw the object of his anger take a step back; his smile faltered his honey toned skin paled. There was a sound, he realized, a deep rumble that sounded like an avalanche in the distance, which seemed to be coming from him. He was growling, and the part of him that would be very disturbed by this development had fled, and the part that remained found the sound deeply satisfying as satisfying as the scent of fear that seemed to roll off of the black haired man.

The wind blew his hair first east and then west, his silver bangs shadowed his eyes, but he could still see quite well. The black haired man took another step back, looking confused he noted. His hair had come loose from his ponytail and the loose strands danced lightly in the wind.

Miroku stood slowly and cracked his knuckles. He regarded the sharp foreign nails with a detached fascination; he chuckled lightly as they lengthened and his former figure visibly swallowed and took another step back.

_Shit! This is bad, very bad._ Inuyasha took another slow cautious step back.

Inuyasha raised his hands in a placating motion. "He, he, now Miroku just calm down; you need to relax." He said and laughed; but it was the kind of laughter that had no lungs behind it. It sounded rather like the rustling of fallen leaves and it hovered uncomfortably in the stillness of the camp.

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**Next time:** More chaos ensues, in a bit more light hearted manner

Chapter 6: The Village of the Dolls.

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**A/N:** Alright I know not only do I not update this for awhile but I end it with a cliff hanger, but calm down unless I can think of a funny way for Miroku to kill Inuyasha it's just not going to happen- this is humor not horror.

Anyway while you wait for this fic to be updated again (check back around next weekend) check out my other two current stories-

**The Mononoke of Forest Keep**

**The Sleeper**

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**Read and Review:** Alright was this chapter any good, honestly? Let me know what you think- criticism is always welcome.


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